Shell retreats as solidarity with Pat O'Donnell continues

Round up of events in Dublin and a personal view of the progress of the campaign

The week before last Erris fisherman Pat O'Donnell was jailed for seven months for his part in the communities ongoing resistance to Shell's attempt to impose an experimental gas pipeline on them. Across the country local Shell to Sea groups have been holding solidarity protests and other events for Pat. In Dublin this has included two protests and a public meeting in UCD. Meanwhile Shell have been forced to admit a temporary defeat in the face of local opposition and call off the construction they have planned for Glengad this year.

The first of the Dublin protests was Tuesday last week when campaigners gathered outside Shell HQ to highlight the role of Shell in Pat's jailing. Because Pat has the fishing rights along the pipeline route he has been repeatedly targeted for detention whenever Shell has needed to carry out construction work. And back in June, just before the arrival of Shell's pipeline ship the Solitaire, Pat's boat was boarded at night by four armed and masked men and sunk, an event reminiscent of how oil corporations have dealt with local protests around the world.

On Wednesday a well attended public meeting was held in UCD, speakers include Andy Storey chairperson of Afri (http://www.afri.ie/), Caoimhe Kerins from Dublin Shell to Sea and Maura Harrington, who like Pat has been imprisoned for resisting Shell's experimental gas pipeline. A report and pictures from that meeting can be found at http://www.indymedia.ie/article/95771 Below I've attached audio recordings of the meeting including the question and answer sessions after the speakers presentations.

On Saturday Dublin Shell to Sea campaigners joined friends of Pat's who had traveled from Mayo for a protest at the GPO. Banners highlighted not only the injustice of Pat's imprisonment but also the fact that the Irish state is giving billions of gas & oil to the energy corporations without them paying any royalties. This at a time when health, education and pay is being slashed to save a tiny percentage of the sums that are to be given away. Thousands of the 'Someday Independent', the leaflet that explains the issues around the campaign in detail were distributed to the public during the protest. This is a 30 second video of this protest at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE-irZ-0CFA

Three years ago Shell thought it was all over. The millions spent on the media campaign along with the fact that most of the media is either state owned or owned by those who are also in oil & gas exploration meant that all critical voices in the press had been silenced. The Gardai use of violence against protests had been used to smash and demoralize the opposition in the area allowing refinery construction to proceed with only the occasional interruption. It appears at that point it was decided the gloves could come off to smash those who were still holding out and hundreds of private security guards were deployed who intimidated, abused and videoed local residents. Pat O'Donnell's boat was sunk at sea and Willie Corduff was beaten in the Shell compound at Glengad. These tactics backfired in the Spring when it was discovered that not only were some of these security from east European fascist organisations but that several had been involved in an attempt to spark a civil war in Bolivia, see http://www.indymedia.ie/article/92865

Resistance is fertile

Despite the ongoing attempt to suppress and silence the campaign spirits are high. The pressure created by the campaign meant that An Bord Pleanala felt unable to rubber stamp Shell's plan's for running the experimental gas pipeline through the village of Rossport and instead pointed out the obvious safety issues that campaigners had been highlighting for years (e.g. people living in the blast zone) and gave Shell two months to address these. Of course when Shell proved unable to do so that deadline was extended for a further four months but this has forced Shell to call off construction at Glengad this summer.

This is a significant if temporary victory over Shell but Dublin Shell to Sea spokesperson Caoimhe Kerins warned that “Although this announcement is a significant victory for the local community, other major works will still be going ahead, while fisherman Pat O’Donnell is out of Shell’s way in prison. This means that 2010 is set to be another year of disruption for the community, continued harassment and intimidation by Gardai and Shell security, as well as the unlawful arrest and the targeted jailing of key campaigners. There are no options left for Shell, except to process the gas at sea, which is standard practice around the world. This is what local people have been demanding for almost a decade. It's still not to late to do the right thing.”

The An Bord Pleanala decision has also started to break apart Shell's well funded media campaign with some of the more courageous journalists daring to stand up to Shell and publish articles questioning the project. As might be expected these journalists are now being targeted in the media for doing so. Shell themselves seem scared of debating the issues with Shell to Sea, at least two TV debates have been canceled due to Shell or pro-Shell journalists pulling out at the last minute in recent weeks.

As the scale of the Great Oil & Gas giveaway has been revealed more and more people are taking a stand against Shell. In the last couple of months new Shell to Sea groups have sprung up around the country, the recently formed Kildare group has been leafletting in Kildare town. You can help in a wide range of ways from simple things like sending a solidarity letter to Pat in prison to let him know he is not alone to getting copies of the 'Someday Independent' off Dublin Shell to Sea (contact details on their web site) to joining or forming a local Shell to Sea group to do this and more.

Please write to Pat in prison. His address is: Pat O'Donnell, Castlerea Prison, Harristown, Castlerea,Co.Roscommon. Alternatively you can email mayoshelltosea@gmail.com and they will pass on your email to Pat. The Dublin Shell to Sea page can be found at http://www.dublins2s.com/

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People in deprived areas in Northern Ireland are three times more likely to take their lives. Health minister Edwin Poots said, ‘Unemployment rates in deprived areas further affect people and this is a major concern. Studies indicate that a 1% increase in unemployment is met with a corresponding 0.79% increase in suicide.

A huge secretive Garda security operation last night swung into operation in Dublin Port as Shell's Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) left the port as part of a huge convoy of Garda vehicles. News of the operation had leaked at the last minute meaning that with only an hours notice a handful of Shell to Sea campaigners managed to get down to the port entrance despite the pouring rain. Most of us were pulled over and questioned by Garda at least once and the Garda helicopter stayed overhead as various Garda vehicles including a van load of riot cops with the door open drove past us repeatedly.

In a new twist to the decade long struggle against Shell Rossport Solidarity Camp has revealed that Mayo County Council (MCC) has issued an eviction notice to the landowner of the field where the Rossport Solidarity Camp is located. Mayo farmer Gerry Burke has been threatened with fines of over €12,000 and two years in prison. Despite these theats the annual June Bank Holiday solidarity gathering will go ahead in a couple of weeks.

Saturday's National Rally against the Household Tax in the National Stadium was literally filled to overflowing. As well as nearly 3,000 people crammed into every possible space in the Stadium another 4 to 500 were in the car park at the side, unable to fit into the building. And the thousands who attended were angry, energized and expectant of victory. The National Stadium normally hosts boxing marches but the atmosphere on Saturday topped that of watching a home fighter coming out on top in a close fought bout.

A large force of Garda and council workers were deployed at 3.30am today, International Women's Day, to clear Occupy Dame Street (ODS) camp. The camp was completely demolished in the course of the eviction, campers intimidated and their personal property stolen. This was a level of force way out of proportion with the numbers in the camp (about 15 people) and stands in contrast with the lack of resources put into investigating what happened at Anglo, the collapse of which has left a debt of 26,000 Euro on every single person in the country. [Italiano]

The end of February saw 19 Shell to Sea campaigners, including a WSM member, being prosecuted on 80 charges for civil disobediance against Shell's decade long attempt to impose an experimental high pressure raw gas pipeline on the communities of Erris. Over 8,000 euro in fines were handed down by this special sitting of the Belmullet court and Shell to Sea spokesperson Terence Conway was given two 3-month prison sentences under section 8 of the Public Order Act for blocking the road on two seperate occasions, a 'crime' that anyone following the struggle will be aware Shell's private security company committs three times a day with the co-operation of the Gardai.
(Image: Community show support in advance of the court cases, J Bender, RSC)

Despite the opposition of the governing SInn Fein party, relatives of families of the victims of Bloody Sunday and political supporters, including Irish anarchists, marched in remembrance last Saturday. A report from the anarchists present and a background to the issues behind those determined to continue the annual commemoration. [Italiano]

Mid-December saw the eventual publication of the long-threatened household tax legislation. The first three months of 2012 will present every household in Ireland with a choice: whether to succumb to this new home tax, which along with the proposed water tax will rise to approx €1,200 per annum within a couple of years, or to refuse to register, refuse to pay and make a stand against the costs of bailing out bankers and developers continuing to be hoisted on our shoulders.

Occupy Belfast seized the initiative Monday by re-possessing the former Bank of Ireland building in Royal Avenue gaining media coverage both here and across the world. Around a dozen protestors including a WSM member entered the building, unfurled banners and put up barricades despite early attempts by the police to illegally evict us. A WSM member who took part gives us his views on the occupation below.

The 'Occupy X' movement arrived in Ireland over the weekend when a core group of around 50 people set up camp at the Central Bank Plaza on Dame street. Numbers grew to a few hundred at times over the next days and nights as supporters came down to join in for a while and the curious stopped to see what was going on. Issues highlighted by participants included the bank bail out, IMF intervention & the ongoing Great Oil & Gas Giveaway.

A WSM talk about the development & future of the campaign against water charges, a mass campaign of resistance to privitisation of water and an austerity tax that has emerged in southern Ireland involving hundreds of thousands of people.

Dublin City Council have new by laws to permit officials to interrogate members of the public as to how they are disposing of their rubbish. When the councils started charging for waste disposal years back numerous people refused to pay, the councils then withdrew their collections and ultimately the service was privatised. At the time of the introduction of a fee for rubbish collection some environmentalists argued it was a good thing that would lead to greater recycling and lower waste production. The councils began charging for recycling also of course.

Almost a month has passed since the national conference of the Campaign Against Household and Water Taxes (CAHWT). While on the surface things look pretty quiet, this is a critical juncture for the campaign. The momentum that has been lost by the attachment of the CAHWT to the unsuccessful No referendum campaign will only be rebuilt when the government make their next move, but those active in the campaign need to use the coming weeks to prepare for that eventuality.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about participatory and direct democracy. Renewed interest in alternative forms of organising society has arisen from increasing dissatisfaction with mainstream politics and the domination of the economy by a few corporations. This dissatisfaction has found its expression in the Arab spring, the May 15th movement in Spain and the Occupy movement in the English-speaking world. Where the anti-capitalist movement of the last decade focussed almost exclusively on the power of the corporations and finance capital, this current tendency is to also focus on politics and the state.

The National Conference of the Campaign Against the Household and Water Taxes this Saturday will be making some key decisions that will determine the future success of the campaign. The ultimate objective of our campaign should be to ensure that everyone who gets involved in it can have an equal input into our decision-making. This will make for a more democratic and far more efficient Campaign which large numbers of people will feel direct ownership of. That will mean a far stronger Campaign and one capable of winning. On Saturday we will be distributing this text which explains the case for direct democracy as a leaflet to those attending the conference.

The Workers Solidarity Movement has decided to withdraw from the Campaign Against Home and Water Taxes. Please see statement below. We have made a donation of €1,000 towards paying off the debts of CAHWT.

With the full backing of the Glasgow chapter of Liberty and Solidarity and local community newspaper 'The Burgh Angel' , Hamiltonhill Action Group will be holding a demonstration with the Scottish Tenants Organisation on Thursday 24th September, against the Glasgow Housing Association's (GHA) refusal to invest money in their community.